Jerusalem: Trump move prompts negative world reaction

Sun Online Desk
7th December, 2017 08:15:15

US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital has been met with a wave of disapproval.

Leaders from within the Muslim world and from the wider international community were swift to criticise the move, and some warned of the potential for violence and bloodshed as a result, reports BBC.

Mr Trump also approved moving the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, making America the first country in the world to officially recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

President Mahmoud Abbas said the decision was tantamount to the United States "abdicating its role as a peace mediator" after a decade of sponsoring the Israeli-Palestinian peace process.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said President Trump's announcement was a "historic landmark".

The Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu wrote on Twitter that "the decision is against international law and relevant UN resolutions".

King Salman told Mr Trump by telephone on Tuesday that the relocation of the embassy or recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital "would constitute a flagrant provocation of Muslims, all over the world".

The Arab League called it "a dangerous measure that would have repercussions" across the region.

Iran said the decision risked a "new intifada", or uprising. Its foreign ministry said the US had clearly violated international resolutions.

Meanwhile, Jordan's King Abdullah called for joint efforts to "deal with the ramifications of this decision."

Lebanon's president Michel Aoun said the peace process would be set back decades, while Qatar's foreign minister said the move was "a death sentence for all who seek peace".

Pope Francis said: "I appeal strongly for all to respect the city's status quo, in accordance with the relevant UN resolutions."

The Secretary General of the United Nations, Antonio Guterres, said President Trump's statement "would jeopardise the prospect of peace for Israelis and Palestinians".

The European Union called for the "resumption of a meaningful peace process towards a two-state solution."

French President Emmanuel Macron said Mr Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital was "regrettable".

He called efforts for "avoid violence at all costs."

Both China and Russia also expressed their concern that the move could lead to an escalation of tensions in the region.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May said the UK government disagreed with the US decision which was "unhelpful in terms of prospects for peace in the region".

German Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokesman said on Twitter that Berlin "does not support this position because the status of Jerusalem can only be negotiated within the framework of a two-state solution".